Lorries running on biomethane

A virtuous environmental circle instigated by Carrefour

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Circular economy: delivery lorries supply Carrefour stores using a type of biomethane fuel that is made from the same stores’ recycled waste. The Carrefour group has been experimenting with this new mode of transport for the past two years. It involves recycling non-consumable waste from the stores and has contributed significantly to reducing pollution.

One of the major commitments that Carrefour has made as far as sustainable development concerns involves developing clean forms of transport as a means of improving air quality and people’s health and doing more to tackle wastage, while at the same time developing green energies. The introduction of delivery lorries running on biomethane is a major component of Carrefour’s “Anti-gaspi” plan to tackle waste, and helps both the environment and the local community. This is an area in which Carrefour has had a pioneering role: it introduced the first such lorries in 2013.

The ingenious system is as straightforward as it is revolutionary. Biowaste produced by hypermarkets which is no longer fit for human consumption (rotten fruit and vegetables, pastries, meat waste, plant waste, etc.) is recovered and then processed in a methanisation plant which transforms it into biogas.

This biogas is then purified and transformed into fuel Biomethane before being sent out to the service stations that make up the GNVERT network. It is then used to power Carrefour delivery vehicles.
The tests conducted in Paris and the Lille region in 2013 and 2014 involving around 10 Biomethane lorries reduced CO2 emissions by 12% for each box transported over one year of operation.
Using biomethane-powered lorries is one solution to the major challenges facing us in terms of climate change, public health and food wastage. This mode of delivery can reduce CO2 emissions by 90% and can completely eliminate fine particle emissions. In addition to very good energy performance, comfort benefits for people living locally and the residents of major cities, this solution also reduces noise levels to less than 65 dB.

Taking all of Carrefour’s transport initiatives together, they represent a 6% reduction in the total number of kilometres travelled on roads in France – that’s the equivalent of 13 million km. And 9454 tonnes of CO2 have been prevented thanks to alternative transport means and existing solutions being optimised.